Two world record-holders set to line up for an afternoon of racing in Atlanta’s Piedmont Park
ATLANTA — May 3, 2024 – Eight different international champions, including Olympic, world and European Champions, will take to the track at the adidas Atlanta City Games on May 18, organizers announced today.
The adidas Atlanta City Games is North America’s only “street meet,” taking world-class track and field out of the traditional stadium and onto a temporary straightaway and into Atlanta’s Piedmont Park and will be shown live from 4:45 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. EDT on both adidas’ YouTube Channel as well as on Noah Lyles’ YouTube Channel.
The men’s 200m will see a clash of three different international champions, the most decorated of which is Wayde van Niekerk of South Africa. van Niekerk is a two-time world champion at 400m and won gold in the 400m at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, where he set the still-standing world record of 43.03. van Niekerk will face stiff competition in the form of Antonio Watson of Jamaica, the reigning world champion at 400m, Steven Gardiner of The Bahamas, the 2019 World Athletics Champion at 400m, as well as Trinidad and Tobago’s Jereem Richards, the two-time Commonwealth Games Champion at 200m and 2022 World Athletics Indoor Champion at 400m.
Ferdinand Omanyala of Kenya, the 2022 Commonwealth Games and African Champion and ninth- fastest man all-time at 100m, returns to Atlanta after a successful winter campaign that saw him finish fourth in the 60m final at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Glasgow. In the men’s 100m, Omanyala will face-off against Zharnel Hughes, the 2018 and 2022 European Champion at 100m and 200m, respectively. Hughes is coming to Atlanta after a fantastic 2023 season in which he ran 9.83 and 19.73 to break long-standing British records at 100m and 200m and earned the bronze medal in the 100m at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest.
The women’s 100m hurdles is also shaping up to be a quick contest, featuring the two fastest women in history, Tobi Amusan of Nigeria and America’s Kendra Harrison. In 2022, Amusan ran 12.12 to demolish the world record in the 100m hurdles on her way to capturing gold at the World Athletics Championships in Eugene. Harrison, the 2018 World Athletics Indoor Champion in the 60m hurdles and 2020 Olympic silver medalist, is the former world record-holder and stands as the second fastest 100m hurdler of all-time at 12.20.
Those top athletes join the previously announced Noah Lyles, Grant Holloway and Anna Hall.
The adidas Atlanta City Games, produced by the Atlanta Track Club and Boston-based Global Athletics & Marketing, Inc., will be shown live for free on both adidas’ YouTube Channel as well as Noah Lyles’ YouTube Channel from 4:45 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. EDT on Saturday, May 18.
Applications for media credentials for the 2024 adidas Atlanta City Games are currently open and will be available until Monday, May 13 here. A pre-competition athlete press point opportunity will be held during the athlete practice session in Piedmont Park on Friday, May 17. Information on exact times and athletes for the Friday press point will be sent in a media advisory on Tuesday, May 14.
More on the adidas Atlanta City Games is available at adidasatlantacitygames.com.
Photo by Kevin Morris
About Atlanta Track Club
Atlanta Track Club is a nonprofit committed to creating an active and healthy Atlanta. Through running and walking, Atlanta Track Club motivates, inspires and engages the community to enjoy a healthier lifestyle.
With more than 30,000 members, Atlanta Track Club is the second largest running organization in the United States. In addition to the AJC Peachtree Road Race (peachtreeroadrace.org) – the largest 10K running event in the world, the Publix Atlanta Marathon, PNC Atlanta 10 Miler and Invesco QQQ Thanksgiving Day Half Marathon, Atlanta Track Club directs more than 30 events per year. Through the support of its members and volunteers, Atlanta Track Club also maintains a number of community initiatives including organizing and promoting the Kilometer Kids youth running program to metro Atlanta youth, honoring high school cross country and track and field athletes through Atlanta Track Club’s All-Metro Banquets and supporting the Grady Bicycle EMT program. For more information on Atlanta Track Club, visit atlantatrackclub.org.
